Thursday, July 17, 2008

Interfaith forum in Saudi Arabia

Bismillah, it is a good beginning.

Saudi Arabia is one of the most religiously conservative societies, and is opening up to people of other faiths. The process began in 2005 when Saudi Emissaries started branching out all over the world to explore interfaith. In Dallas per the request of a Saudi minister, I had arranged for a 20 member meeting from Jewish, Islamic and Christian groups as an initial step towards including all faiths in the near future. Since then the Saudi Kingdom has taken series of steps in this direction culminating in interfaith dialogue series. First it was the same three groups; Judaism, Christianity and Islam and now, I am pleased it has included Hinduism and Buddhism.

I am further pleased to read the following statements “Abdullah Al-Turki, secretary-general of the MWL, said, “The aim of the conference is for us to get to know each other and look for ways to cooperate.” And their focus is on “humanitarian issues and challenges facing the world”. He further adds “that the conference would look at social and ethnic conflicts, environmental issues, the breakdown of the family and militant violence around the world.” He added the conferences would initially not focus on theological issues.

Years ago, I had a daily radio show called “Wisdom of Religion, all the beautiful religions” which ran for full two years. Our focus was on the message of each one of the religions and how the common man on the street could relate with the essence of each faith.

God willing, the World Muslim Congress, the Memnosyne Foundation and the Foundation for pluralism from Dallas will work towards creating a better world of co-existence.

MADRID: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah will open here today an international interfaith conference that aims to allow representatives of the world’s great religions to get to know each other.

The Muslim World League (MWL) has organized the World Conference on Dialogue on the directives of King Abdullah. The king “has been calling for this type of dialogue between religions for the past three years,” Saleh Al-Namlah, undersecretary at the Saudi Ministry of Culture and Information, told reporters.

Around 200 people are expected to attend the event. They include representatives of the world’s major religions: Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism and Hinduism. Secretary-General of the World Jewish Congress Michael Schneider and Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, who is in charge of dialogue between the Vatican and Muslims, are prominent among them.

The interfaith idea, which comes after the Saudi king held talks with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican in November last year, has sparked interest from Jewish and Christian groups around the world.

Abdullah Al-Turki, secretary-general of the MWL, said, “The aim of the conference is for us to get to know each other and look for ways to cooperate.”

He added that Saudi Arabia “affirms to the whole world its openness and cooperation with the world community.”

The MWL chief said the conference would avoid theological issues and instead focus on “humanitarian issues” and challenges facing the world. “Islam requires Muslims to inform people about Islam as the final divine message that came after the previous prophets, and that they must also challenge the link between Islam and extremist violence,” he said.

He added that the conference would look at social and ethnic conflicts, environmental issues, the breakdown of the family and militant violence around the world.

Al-Turki said many international organizations concerned with dialogue, human rights and global cooperation have welcomed the interfaith conference.

He hoped the conference would change the minds of the protagonists of a clash of civilizations. “Some researchers in the West still deal with Islamic civilization thinking that it would definitely clash with the Western civilization,” he pointed out.

The MWL secretary-general said the dialogue would help remove misunderstandings about Islam. “The conference will help save humanity from wars, injustice and corruption,” he added.He reiterated Islam’s rejection of terrorism. “Terrorism is an international phenomenon and cannot be linked to a particular religion, country, people or culture.”

Al-Turki spoke about MWL’s long-standing tradition of holding dialogues with leaders of other faiths in the past 50 years. He urged the media to work for promoting a culture of dialogue among followers of different religions and cultures.

After the inaugural session attended by King Abdullah and King Juan Carlos of Spain, four sessions will be held before a final communiqué is read out on Friday.

Spain was chosen as the site for the conference as it is “a natural place for this type of dialogue” since for centuries it has been home to members of three of the world’s great religions, said Saudi Ambassador Prince Saud ibn Naif.

Furthermore, the UN Alliance of Civilizations, aimed at promoting dialogue between different cultures, was the idea of Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.

Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah called for a 'new page for humanity' in inter-religious understanding Wednesday, saying it could help the world recover lost values and emerge from confusion.

Islam was a religion of moderation and tolerance, the monarch said in inaugurating the World Conference on Dialogue, a major inter-faith event sponsored by Saudi Arabia in the Spanish capital.

Earlier initiatives had failed because they sought to merge religions, an attempt doomed to failure, because all religions were convinced of their own beliefs despite God being the same for all, King Abdullah said.

Human tragedies were not caused by religions, but by extremism, the monarch explained.

Spain's King Juan Carlos said inter-faith dialogue could help solve problems including terrorism, hunger, disease and poverty.

Muslim World League Secretary-General Abdullah al-Turki called on delegates attending the three-day conference in Madrid to produce concrete projects with follow-up plans.

Around 200 Muslim, Christian and Jewish clergy and other experts on inter-religious dialogue were expected at the meeting instigated by Saudi Arabia in what was seen as a ground-breaking move for the conservative Muslim kingdom.

Experts and intellectuals, including Lebanese Culture Minister Tariq Mitri and Vatican inter-faith specialist Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, were to analyze issues such as the civilization foundations of inter-faith dialogue, ways to promote it, and common human values.

The conference, which also includes representatives of Buddhism, Hinduism and Taoism, is taking place against the backdrop of the Middle East conflict and controversy over caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed, but it was expected to shun political questions.

The sessions are closed to the media, with a final communique expected Friday.

Organised by the World Muslim League, the conference was partly inspired by King Abdullah's unprecedented meeting with Pope Benedict XVI in the Vatican in November 2007, and by the International Islamic Conference for Dialogue in Mecca last June.

Detractors slammed the Madrid conference as a public relations operation by Saudi Arabia after the attacks of September 11, 2001 in the United States, which were carried by mainly by Saudis inspired by Saudi-born Osama bin Laden.

It was ironic for a meeting on religious tolerance to be sponsored by Saudi Arabia, where people other than Sunni Muslims had few rights, critics said. There were few Shia Muslim participants, and none of the Jewish participants were listed as Israelis, they added.

Others praised the initiative, with the World Jewish Congress describing it as a 'significant and timely development'.

The organisers were believed to have chosen Spain as the host country, because domestic opposition would have made it difficult to stage the conference in Saudi Arabia.

Al-Turki said Spain had been chosen because of the religious tolerance that characterized it when it was partly under Moorish rule for eight centuries until 1492.

Muslims, Christians and Jews lived in a relative harmony in Moorish Spain, known as al-Andalus. 'The image of al-Andalus made us hold this conference in Spain,' al-Turki told the daily El Mundo.

11 comments:

Have you pleas ever thought over the composition and complexities of the Inter-faith programs as is being sponsored by King Abdullah of SA in Madrid. Just please think: "If all are right then who is wrong? If all the faiths who are within the scope of your cosmopolitan society and whom the King, including the Jews, are inviting are correct then why every one is opposing and pointing his guns ONLY to Islam and wants to change its version as per their sweet whims and caprices into a "religion", whereas, as we believe that our Lord is One and He has been all through sending one and only one system of life for humanity to follow from Adam to Muhammad (pbut).

In fact, there is one and only one Deen with Allah and it is Islam and nothing else. Islam has been the Deen of humanity but humans deviated from the path of righteousness and coined different religion as per their convenience and expediencies. These deviated religions that have nothing to offer NOW to humanity for its safety and salvation have "conspired" to raise the bogy of Inter-faith dialogues just to befool the Muslims and debarring them to present their Deen from Allah (SWT) as the only approved system of life from our Lord. In such situation, it would be appropriate to call these efforts as "Inter-Fraud'. Unfortunately, there are a lot of Muslims, in this age of our decadence that have brought Islam to the stage of religion as Jews and Christians have become. These deformed Muslims are easy pray to the advocates of Inter-faith dialogue, That includes the bulk of Muslim leadership including its Kings, dictators and the so-called self-imposed and "self-elected" perpetual Presidents.

I take you as a genuine intellectual of Muslim Ummah and if you follow the same lines as the secular West is trying to infest in the Muslim world to entrap the Muslims in their game plan, nothing will be left in you too to feel proud of. I would love to know where I am wrong and if it is true, I would request you to hands off from such destructive agenda of Super powers and its allies in Europe, Asia and Africa who are determined to limit Islam within the four walls of Masajid and then squander away with the wealth of Muslim world and destroy the precious treasure of their Deen, Al-Islam, the only hope of mankind that is left with us.

I never thought that Muslims can be so "fool" that they will not be able to understand this simple game of their adversaries. The simple reason is this that they are suffering from "Wahan"- the fear of death and the love of this world as explained by our beloved Prophet (S). Unfortunately, our Muslim leadership is suffering most of this disease.

I hope you have the wisdom to share it with your members and advise them to keep away from such frivolous program that has no "khair" in it for the Ummah. At the same time you carry out your program of getting all communities together at one platform with expectation that's some day some Khair will come out of it if you are alive to the situation and invite them gradually to one and only One God, the only Truth of this cosmos.

"Secretary-General of the World Jewish Congress Michael Schneider and Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, who is in charge of dialogue between the Vatican and Muslims, are prominent among them".The Vatican is sending a representative, but the Pope is too big to attend such a gathering, yet when he snaps his fingers the Muslim clergy in all it regalia, stampede to sit at his feet and be lectured to!Call me a cynic !!aik zaraa saa dil tutaa haioar toe koyee baat nahin!!!Rashid

I like your diplomacy regarding religion but my brother in Islam there is a fine line between diplomacy and shirk, our entire faith revolves around "I bear witness that there is no god except for God (Allah), and Muhammad is the messenger of God."' . We need to be very careful when passing remarks like

"Your question, "If all are right then who is wrong?. The answer is simple, why does any one have to be wrong? Islam is not about negating other faiths; it is about creating a world of justice and co-existence for all. Sura Kafirun was discussed recently, look at the respect Quraan teaches us to give to other faiths"

"First of all Islam came to negate all the falsehood that was added to the previous religions before Prophet Mohammed(PBUH), yes Islam does teach the respect and peaceful coexistence with other religion but this doesn't mean that you start accepting other religions, this would be called hypocrisy. As I believe and this is my interpretation of Surah Kafirun that it was revealed to Prophet(PBUH) so that he would know that there are people(Kafir) who will not believe what you believe in, so you tell them you keep your religion I will keep mine. It was not about respect to other religion but a mere fact that their religion and Islam can't be merged, otherwise it would be shirk."

"One of the purposes Salat fulfills is that very idea of uplifting every one on par."

"Then why don't the Ismalis, Bories, Shia, go to one mosque, I can understand the different ways of praying Salat, but why do they label themselves something else before being called Muslim. I don't remember reading anyone was Ismaili, Ahmadi, Qadyiani, Shia, Borei, or even Sunni during the time of Mohamad sallal lahu alaihi wasalam. If we start practicing your way of diplomacy towards accepting everything then I am afraid there will be plenty more sects created, each person will create their own way of worshiping, "Apni derh inch kee masjid". Islam(Quran and Sunnah) guides us in resolving issues plus the counseling from the Scholars, I don't believe you are a Scholar. I strongly advice you to add scholars to your Muslim email groups so that we would know the context of sura's and ayat's before quoting to satisfy our own point.. "

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) initiated and signed the Madinah pact of co-existence. If he had believed that the Jews, Christians and others were wrong, he would not have affixed his signature (stamp) next to theirs.

"I am sorry to say but your interpretation of events is totally messed up, he(pbuh) did sign the pact but the pact was not to confirm that he accepts their religion, but to practice faith under protection of each other. and to stand against those who want to hurt them, that was the actual pact. This in no way says that he(pbuh) accepted their faith. This pact was broken by Jews, so that tells you how much you can trust them, and Quran is fill with their stories, Allah talks about them plenty of times how they broke their promises. Anyways the point is not to degrade others but to encourage them to the right path, which doesn't mean that you say things to their likings so that you are loved by them. Our last Prophet(pbuh) or in fact any Prophet they were all cherished by their communities but when they invited toward truth they were all loathed, so a person should not be afraid of speaking the truth. "

-Ovais

Moderator :: Ovais, thanks for sharing a different point of view, it is always welcome on this forum, that is how we grow and learn. English language is subject to different interpretations just like other languages. When you wrote "mean that you start accepting other religions, this would be called hypocrisy. ?" Accepting other religions does not mean that you believe in what they believe, it simply means an acknowledgment of another system without prejudice.

I am not a scholar nor do I claim to be one, but Allah has blessed me, like a billion others to think and analyze. After all, the Prophet's last sermon embodies the idea that it is your responsibility to read and understand the book that I am leaving to you. He did not assign its understanding to another being. None of our Wali allah's or prophets had gone to the university or had a degree, they had accumulated the wisdom and shared with the humanity. By the way, we have several scholars and Imams on the group, who do respond if we veer off on the wrong path, as long as we are in the range, they let it ride.

Same issue with the last paragraph - about accepting, accepting is not converting to, it is acknowledging the otherness of other.

The dialogues have been going on for over 100 years between West and Islam. They abolished khilafat in 1924. Occupied Muslim lands, took over the oil and gas fields and left Muslims like slaves in Palestine, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, etc. Over ten million muslims died and yet there is neither peace nor employment and food for the masses. Among middle east countries, and Brunie they earn trillions of dollar a year but what Muslims get except death and destruction, but Turkey and India gets the reward

Moderator â€“ Murad, there is another way of looking at it, they did not abolish Khilafat, we were willing partners to have it abolished. It is time to own up our failures. The Muslims in the democracies have not been contributing and participating members of the society at large. We are way too selfish; imagine if the mainstream community does not do good to others, where we would beâ€¦ the least we can do is reciprocate. I attended Col Ann Wrights lecture last night, the lady who was in the highest ranks at State department and resigned in protest of inhumanity in Iraq and elsewhere. A very few Muslims have spoken up against Darfur genocide, instead we blame the Jews that they are taking advantageâ€¦ if we had taken the lead, it would have been nice. We need to learn to speak up for justice for one and all, then we will have high moral grounds to speak from.

"The question still remains, why didn't Mecca become the capital,when it was central to Muslims".

Frid and other friends of ours take the `apologetic' stanceto The Prophet's decision to stay in Madina and thus defend Islamthe faith, as if one is casting aspersions on Muhamad's actions tostay there, for they are thinking in terms of the today's conceptof separation of the `Church and State' when I ask the question.Without going into a long winded Treatise on the subject,I maintain that there is, in general among the Muslim Communitya similar concept of the institution of Church as in other"religions". This is an anathema to a student of Quran for Islamis not a religion by a long chalk and hence the question ofseparation does not occur. Macca of the time, and even today,and its economy and culture, then and today was based on theReligion.

One's life is constantly affected by what the State proclaimsas its Laws and Policies, and its obedience is compulsory forme as its citizen (4-59)-- with the right to protest againstinjustice if inherent in the Laws. There in lies the injunctionof the Righteous Acts upon men and women as well as theOperatives of the State (4-124) who are part of the Civil societyand not an Elite. This was a paradigm shift in the operationof civil society of the early Muslims in Madina and it was notpossible to break the nexus in Macca, as we see it is noteven now, thanks to the vested interests! Accordingly even Madinais now a Religious Haram. Important as it may be for Muslim History.

The Palestinian and Israel problem is difficult, as the hardlinersand extremist are in leadership roles, and they will be there unless enough people want to speak up and do the right thing; peace. Notenough people believe in bringing a change.

Mike—This change can not be brought about unless that which is wrongis "acknowledged" and wrongs are "righted". That is a completepackage of Justice in the laws of nature for Peace,for which we all strive, otherwise it is a one-way traffic or as Isee it "I am alright Jack" syndrome.And that is the unrighteous stance of the Powerful today and perhapshas always been so. Hence the difficulty.Rashid

Rashid, your wrote "This is an anathema to a student of Qur'aan for Islam is not a religion by a long chalk and hence th question of separation does not occur" .

Please consider these two situations. We have written quite extensively about this, but let meput it in a few words again;

i) Prophet Muhammad in his last sermon said something likethis, I am leaving this book to you for you to understand andpractice the goodness – Meaning, the religious instruction iscomplete, whatever questions you have, refer to the book, you areindividually responsible for your acts, so you figure out the truth.ii) When he passed, he did not assign the leadership of the stateeither, though there are different points of view, the one that isprevalent is he could have passed it on to Hazrat Ali, the mostqualified to carry on the role, but he was his relative, and thatwould have created a dynasty, which Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) did not prefer. Indeed he changed earlier traditions of monopolies by the tribes and brought in a tradition of consultative form of governance, a prelude to democracy.

The above two thoughts, the Madinah pact and a whole lot of researchon the subject leads one to believe the idea of separation of Churchand State was the system to be carried forward.

it challenges what we were led to believe that Islam is here tobecome the religion of the world, it was not. Qur'aan always gavea room for others. If we understand the Sura Kafirun (http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/07/sura-kafirun-un-believers.html ) andunderstand the Madinah pact we can see the room given to others withrespect and dignity. Islam is not about arrogance.

The purpose of Islam was to work with others for creating justsocieties, prophet has created several models to demonstrate that,including treaties with other tribes. Qur'aan forbids compulsion;there is no compulsion in the matters of faith. Qur'aan did notnegate Judaism, Christianity and other traditions, instead itdeclared that every one that does good work has a place in his abode.Islam was not a requirement to enter paradise, good deeds were.Separation of church and state is part of our heritage that we needto go back to, it will take time.

I sent you my comments on the captioned item on July 18, 08 but youignored it. Perhaps it was not suiting your concept and ideology thatyou hold. However, you could share it with others with the samequalifying underlying note as given above. It is still afresh and youcan please share it with othersFor your ready reference I am re-sending it separately.ShukrunShamim Siddiqi# # #

Moderator: Brother Shamim, You know this forum very well by now and Iam surprised at your question that since you differed, you assumed, Imay not publish your opinion. Brother, the only way to learn is learndifferent points of view, the only thing that will not be publishedis what is not in our mission statement, such as; Proselytization andPolitics in general.

Our group is very focused on "how to live, and live well in a civicsociety and how to be a contributor and a participant in societywhere every one's place is respected and honored regardless of theirfaith"

You may have seen a few people criticize me, since it was legitimate,I have published it. We are a very secure group to face anything,good, bad and ugly with grace. I have nothing to gain other thanseeing that we all get along and be a contributor towards a betterworld of co-existence. It is all Qur'aan based 49:17

Your comment was indeed published and I am pleased to forward it foryour reference... it takes time to this. ( not posted here, but wasposted on the forum a few days ago)

Shamim Siddiqi and Ovis Hassan, have your actually read the Quran and hadith? Where is the "respect and peaceful coexistence" - I must have missed it? Do the hate and violence against non-Muslims bother you?

This interfaith Forum is a joke -- a bad, sick joke. In Madrid, the Saudi King was just feeding Western people sweet, meaningless words. Nothing will change in SA or other Islamic societies. They will continue to discriminate against non-Muslims, Jews, women, gays and even their own minoritiesbecause that is central to Islamic doctrine. Tolerance in Islam is a one way street, and crooked.

A question for Muslims... Do you think we are lower than animals because we don't believe (that is from al-anfal, the spoils of war, book 8, the quran). Do you think the "people of the book" should be third class citizens? (after women, the second-class). Do you think Muslims have a right to torture and mutilate us if we speak out against Islam? (Al-maeda, the table, book 5 verse 33). If we were not "people of the book," just plain vanilla pagans, the Quran says to slaughter us (but only to subdue the "people of the book").

Why should I, a non-Muslim, have any respect for Muslims and Islam after seeing how Muslims treat others and reading the comments here?

Kactuz

PS: About Surah 98... The Quran says that the divisions among the people of "earlier revelations" (Jews, Christian) are proof that they are corrupt and their message is not true. So then "Clear Proof" was given in the form of the Quran through Mohammad.

So, it seems that there are a few (hundred) divisions among Muslims, so does that mean the message is also not true?

Thanks for sharing your concers, as you have read them, it is perhaps legitimiate.

However, finding the truth is our own responsibility, and I am one such person who was a born Muslim, but stayed open to all faiths including Atheism. It used to bother me when I read the translations of Qur'aan.

Turning point came when I read Mohammad Asad's translation, and then a few more. I felt I was duped for years with wrong translations. Now, I am working on my own translations to demytify the myth.

We as Muslims plan to respond to pastor Terry Jones' planned burning of 3000 copies of Quran on September 11, 2013 in positive terms.

Our response - we will reclaim the standard of behavior practiced by the Prophet concerning “scurrilous and hostile criticism of the Qur’an” (Muhammad Asad Translation Note 31, verse 41:34). It was "To overcome evil with good is good, and to resist evil by evil is evil." It is also strongly enjoined in the Qur’an in the same verse 41:34, “Good and evil deeds are not equal. Repel evil with what is better; then you will see that one who was once your enemy has become your dearest friend.”

God willing Muslims will follow the divine guidance and pray for the restoration of Goodwill, and on that day many Muslim organizations will go on a “blood drive” to save lives and serve humanity with kindness.

We invite fellow Americans of all faiths, races, and ethnicities to join us to rededicate the pledge, “One nation under God”, and to build a cohesive America where no American has to live in apprehension, discomfort or fear of fellow Americans. This event is a substitute for our 10th Annual Unity Day Celebration (www.UnitydayUSA.com) held in Dallas, but now it will be at Mulberry, Florida.

Unwittingly Pastor Jones has done us a favor by invigorating us by his decision to burn nearly 3000 copies Quran on September 11, 2013. Obviously he is not satisfied by the notoriety he garnered by burning one Qur'an last year.

As Muslims and citizens we honor the free speech guaranteed in our constitution. We have no intentions to criticize, condemn or oppose Pastor Terry Jones' freedom of expression. Instead, we will be donating blood and praying for goodness to permeate in our society.

We plan to follow Jesus Christ (pbuh), a revered prophet in Islam as well as Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) – that of mitigating the conflicts and nurturing good will for the common good of the society.

We hope, this event and the message will remind Muslims elsewhere in the world as well, that violence is not the way. Muslims, who react violently to senseless provocation, should realize that, violence causes more violence, and besmirches the name of the religion that we hold so dear. We believe that Prophet Muhammad was a mercy to the mankind, and we ought to practice what we believe and preach. We must not insult Islam by the negative reactions of a few.

We can only hope it will bring about a change in the attitude of the followers of Pastor Jones, and in the behavior of those Muslims who reacted violently the last time Pastor sought notoriety – We hope this small step towards a bridge to peaceful coexistence would propel us towards building a cohesive society.

Like most Americans a majority of Muslims quietly go about their own business, but it is time to speak up and take positive action instead of negative reaction. May this message of peace and goodwill reverberate and reach many shores.

Lastly, we appreciate the Citizens of Mulberry, Florida, Honorable Mayor George Hatch, City Commissioners, police and Fire Chiefs for handing this situation very well. This will add a ‘feather of peace’ in the City’s reputation. We hope Mulberry will be a catalyst in showing the way in handling conflict with dignity and peace.

We thank the Media for giving value to the work towards peace rather than conflict.

CIVIL DIALOGUE

The people in Dallas are making an effort to understand and clean their own hearts first, when we are free from bias, it would be easy to share that with others. Islam teaches us in so many ways to "respect the otherness of others" and it is time we find simple practical ways of doing it.

SACRED - THE FILM

ABOUT US

The role of Muslims is to contribute towards the well being of humanity, and to be the conflict mitigaters and goodwill nurturers. Our goal is a secure world for every human. Please read the mission statement.

This group is about Muslims and their civic responsibilities in creating a dignified religious, social and civic space for themselves in the community of faiths. We do not distinguish between a Sunni, Shia, Ahmadiyya, WD Muhammad, Ismaili, Bohra or the subsets of each group, all believe in God, the Prophet and the accountability of their actions and whoever calls himself or herself a Muslim is a Muslim to us. Currently we are blessed to have our Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Bahai, Sikh and Buddhist friends among us to learn and share their perspective. This is our world and our God collectively.

MEMBERSHIP SINCE 2003

World Muslim Congress is a think tank, all are welcome to participate in the discussions, our scope is limited and defined in our mission statement. Currently, we have 1800 Members world wide with no membership fee.

To join the group, send an email to: WorldMuslimCongress-Subscribe@yahoogroups.com

WHAT WILL MUSLIMS DO WHILE QURAN IS BURNT

It is a purposeful positive event for Americans of different faiths, races, ethnicities and other uniqueness to come together to rededicate ourselves to our pledge; One nation under God with liberty and Justice for all. We will pray for peace, prosperity and security of our nation.

Last year the event focused on the positive response of Sikh community to the Wisconsin Shooting and this year, we will focus on the positive prayerful response of Muslim community to the planned Qur'an Burning by Pastor Terry Jones in Mulberry, Florida.

Click on pictures to see larger version of the photo

RSVP- ConfirmAttendance@gmail.comContact information - at the bottomPROGRAM DETAILSPictures indicate for visualization of the program as was done in Dallas, Texas We honor the free speech guaranteed in our constitution, and have no intentions to criticize, condemn or oppose Pastor Terry Jones freedom of expression. Instead, we will be donating blood and praying for goodness to prevail for the common good of the world. We hope, our mercy based message will remind those few Muslims elsewhere in the world that violence is not the way. We believe it may bring a change in the attitudes of followers of Pastor Jones, and in the behavior of those Muslims who reacted violently the last time Pastor sought notoriety.

Please join us for a life changing event, you will fall in love with the idea that all of us Americans will come together as Americans and nothing but Americans. While we have our identity, we look to each other as American and rededicate ourselves to our pledge; one nation under God with liberty and justice for all.

You will be a part of history in creating a model behavior in dealing with conflicts and building a cohesive America, where no American has to live in apprehension or fear of the other.The 10th Annual event is moved to Mulberry, Florida - for a singular purpose - to mitigate possible apprehensions generated by the planned burning of 2998 copies of Quran on September 11, 2013. We hope the event restores our faith in the cohesiveness of America, and we the people will go on about our business of living our daily lives.The full press release: http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2013/08/planned-muslim-response-to-quran_18.html

WE WILL GATHER;

to be together as Americans

to express our gratitude to our men and women in uniform

to honor individuals who have contributed to the well being of Mulberry, Florida

to emphasize and appreciate diversity represented by America.

to cherish the otherness of others.

to commit to be good neighbors

to rededicate our pledge to the peace, prosperity and security of America

Please join us with your family and friends to be together as Americans. Your presence is a valuable expression of unity. Along with our elected officials, civic, religious and business leaders, you help fulfill our common values and aspirations. Your presence fortifies our commitment to a pluralistic America.

As Americans, and as American of all hues, we uphold, protect, defend and celebrate the values enshrined in our constitution. All our faiths reinforce the creed of "One Nation under God, with liberty and justice for all”.

On this Unity Day USA, we, the people of the United States of America of every faith, race and ethnicity, will gather to express our commitment to co-existence, safety, prosperity and the well being of our nation.

PROGRAM: FLAG CEREMONY

NATIONAL ANTHEM

(Preferably joined in by members of at least 7 faith traditions, if not all)

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE:

To be led by the Hon. Mayor George Hatch of Mulberry

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Acknowledgement of dignitaries- Suzanne

Thanking key volunteers - Curtis

Thanking the Media- Butch

Appreciating the sponsors - Lynn

PURPOSE

Purpose - a new positive approach to conflict mitigation and rededicating to our pledge – one nation under God with Liberty and Justice for all- Mike

Mayors, Police and Fire chiefs, and Civic Leaders to share 3 minutes each – about their responsibility in treating each citizen with respect and dignity

HONORING THE ACTIVISTS

Those who have stood up for others

SPIRITUAL LEADERS

All-inclusive spiritual leaders will be on stage representing each tradition, and lighting a candle of the next, a symbolic gesture to be the light to others. Every available religious American representation in Polk County will be accommodated. This is not about sermons but about being together as Americans. Please beware, it is about Americans and included in the group will be Atheists, Pagans and other non-religious traditions.

PEACE PLEDGE

I will I will speak up when there is injustice.

I will speak up when truth is not spoken.

I will make my words and my actions mitigate conflicts.

I will do my share in nurturing goodwill for the benefit of all.

I will do my share of peace work, without looking for others

I will do respect the God given uniqueness of each individual.

I will do my best to live and let others live their way.

I will do my best to nurture goodwill in everything I do.

SPECIAL MUSLIM PRAYER

( 3-4 Minutes)Muslim prayers and supplication for the safety and security and unity of our nation. Pray for the well being of all Americans, and seek forgiveness for all of us, and may God guide Reverend Terry Jones to become a be blessed peace maker. Pray for the goodwill of the people of Polk county and Mulberry City, and pray for a cohesive America, where no American needs to live in apprehension, discomfort or fear or fellow Americans.

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We as Muslims plan to respond to pastor Terry Jones' planned burning of 3000 copies of Quran on September 11, 2013 in positive terms.

Our response - we will reclaim the standard of behavior practiced by the Prophet concerning “scurrilous and hostile criticism of the Qur’an” (Muhammad Asad Translation Note 31, verse 41:34). It was "To overcome evil with good is good, and to resist evil by evil is evil." It is also strongly enjoined in the Qur’an in the same verse 41:34, “Good and evil deeds are not equal. Repel evil with what is better; then you will see that one who was once your enemy has become your dearest friend.”

God willing Muslims will follow the divine guidance and pray for the restoration of Goodwill, and on that day many Muslim organizations will go on a “blood drive” to save lives and serve humanity with kindness.

We invite fellow Americans of all faiths, races, and ethnicities to join us to rededicate the pledge, “One nation under God”, and to build a cohesive America where no American has to live in apprehension, discomfort or fear of fellow Americans. This event is a substitute for our 10th Annual Unity Day Celebration (www.UnitydayUSA.com) held in Dallas, but now it will be at Mulberry, Florida.

Unwittingly Pastor Jones has done us a favor by invigorating us by his decision to burn nearly 3000 copies Quran on September 11, 2013. Obviously he is not satisfied by the notoriety he garnered by burning one Qur'an last year.

As Muslims and citizens we honor the free speech guaranteed in our constitution. We have no intentions to criticize, condemn or oppose Pastor Terry Jones' freedom of expression. Instead, we will be donating blood and praying for goodness to permeate in our society.

We plan to follow Jesus Christ (pbuh), a revered prophet in Islam as well as Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) – that of mitigating the conflicts and nurturing good will for the common good of the society.

We hope, this event and the message will remind Muslims elsewhere in the world as well, that violence is not the way. Muslims, who react violently to senseless provocation, should realize that, violence causes more violence, and besmirches the name of the religion that we hold so dear. We believe that Prophet Muhammad was a mercy to the mankind, and we ought to practice what we believe and preach. We must not insult Islam by the negative reactions of a few.

We can only hope it will bring about a change in the attitude of the followers of Pastor Jones, and in the behavior of those Muslims who reacted violently the last time Pastor sought notoriety – We hope this small step towards a bridge to peaceful coexistence would propel us towards building a cohesive society.

Like most Americans a majority of Muslims quietly go about their own business, but it is time to speak up and take positive action instead of negative reaction. May this message of peace and goodwill reverberate and reach many shores.

Lastly, we appreciate the Citizens of Mulberry, Florida, Honorable Mayor George Hatch, City Commissioners, police and Fire Chiefs for handing this situation very well. This will add a ‘feather of peace’ in the City’s reputation. We hope Mulberry will be a catalyst in showing the way in handling conflict with dignity and peace.

We thank the Media for giving value to the work towards peace rather than conflict.